bench press, deadlift, etc.
 

I'm in the worst shape of my life! Mid-thirties, with a wife who is a genius in the kitchen, and a two-hour commute to a sit-down computer job.

I have had to find ways to excercise. I do not have time for the luxury of driving to a gym.

Step number one: just to keep from being completely inflexible and getting stress headaches, I do strectches/crunches/push-ups etc. every morning before I get dressed. This happens in between putting on my socks and underwear and finishing getting dressed, so it is "scheduled" every day (therefore I do it every day (I can't skip getting dressed!)).

Step number two: bought a used Gold's Gym weight bench (basic incline/decline adjustable bench) at the thrift store for $39 (cha-ching!) and it came with two sets of dumbells and one straight bar. I had one set of dumbells already--so now I have a warm-up weight, a working weight, and a max weight with dumbells, and one heavy straight bar.

I am forgetting all the fancy bullsh!t I ever read in workout magazines (when I was in my early twenties and had a fast metabolism so what did it matter anyway?) and cranking out BASIC, COMPOUND movements:

Dumbell presses (both slight incline & seated for shoulders)
Deadlifts
Clean and Jerks (yes, those) which are actually a straight-bar version of my own favorite movement (#1 here)
Bent-over barbell rows
Hammer curls
I throw in a few bent-over flys for my rear delts. That's about it.

No fancy cardio warm-up, super-setting, pre-fatiguing etc. etc. just pyramided sets of basic freeweight movements.

STEP THREE: I need to go get some new shoes I can go jogging in. Burn a few calories and get some heart health in there.

Supplemental: We are trying to eat smaller portions and more healthy choices, but NOT to the detriment of enjoying eating food, which we love. I am drinking straight rum over ice instead of beer. I don't plan to cut that many calories, instead I intend to work out with free weights in my garage, like a prison inmate, and build more muscle mass to BURN more calories even at a resting metabolic rate.

per lumberjim's comments in chat: yes, I do need to hook up some pullups and dips.

jinx's comment

huh? really

Don't forget to get a little exercise during the day. Figuring a two hour commute (each way?) and a nine hour day, you've got 13 straight hours in there with no exercise. Go for a walk on your lunch hour or do some dumbbell stuff in your office. I think it makes a difference.

you should get one of those ultimate pull up bars and slap it on your office door and pound out pull ups and chin ups. you'll be the envy of the office.

That thing is awesome - I just got one!

I enjoy mine too. It's way better than the old anchored one I've had for years.

Some crystal meth with help you drop the weight and give you lots of energy.

HIV will help with the weight too, but I remember hearing something about unintended consequences...

I agree. At my last facility I could eat at my desk and then go to the on-site gym for "lunch" (some light cardio etc.). I'm still waiting for the physical therapy department to get built here, but I am trying to stay buddies with the director. I do need some kind of office activity though...

On a serious note, I used to skip lunch and hit the gym at lunch. It really worked great

Hell yes, man. Especially if I wore scrubs on those days.

I run the stairs at work if I'm feeling run-down. I've been working on flexibility as well.

Do your 2hr car commute by bike, say six hours each way plus eight hours of work... you'd even have an extra four hours for the Cellar.

I take breaks, and half my lunch hour, and walk. I walk all over the building, up these stairs, down those stairs. Today, my feet were killing me because of my shoes and I refused to get on an elevator.

When it's nice I'll probably walk around town: there's a lot of cool stuff nearby.